A Coward in the Temple
by Slowcoach Campbell
Summary: An account of Order 66 and the attack on the Jedi Temple by the 501st Legion, as seen through the eyes of a very unusual clone indeed; the cowardly Captain Hawk. The lives of his friends Rex and Ahsoka are in his hands; whether he likes it or not!
1. Introduction

**Chapter 1: Introduction**

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><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong> This is the third instalment in my _Cowardly Clone_ series (see also _Getting Carried Away by __Geonosians_ and _The Bounty Hunters Trap_). The previous stories were both Action/humour, with a heavy emphasis on the comedy side of things. With this story there will be plenty of action and I'll try as usual to get a few laughs out of you, but I will inevitably have to have some angst. This is a story about Order 66 after all.

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><p><strong>Introduction:<strong> Order 66; that terrible command that resulted in the near complete extinction of the Jedi Order. But what was it like for an ordinary clone on that fateful night? What was it like to turn on your former commanders and friends, to march into the Temple and do battle with the mighty Jedi in their strongest citadel? Sadly we do not have a firsthand account from any _normal_ clones of what they thought, felt and saw that night. But what we do have however is the account of a very _abnormal_ clone indeed; Captain Hawk of the 501st.

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><p><strong>Back-story:<strong> Formerly sergeant, now captain, Hawk of the 501st legion is an extremely unusual clone. He is defective; a liar, a coward and a disgrace to the Grand Army of the Republic. He should have been disposed of by the Kaminoans soon after birth, and would have been, if it was not for a talent for concealing his true personality. In spite of his loathing for combat and battle he has earned a reputation as a hero of the Republic and great respect from the Jedi Order. Captain Hawk lives in constant fear that his secret will be discovered and that he will one day be revealed as the fraud that he is. His only hope is to continue to play the part of the brave hero and hope for the best.

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><p><strong>Disclaimer:<strong> I do not own _Star Wars_; the character of Sergeant Hawk was inspired by George McDonald Fraser's character of Harry Flashman, of the _Flashman Papers_.

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><p><strong>As always, please review, I love reading your comments (and generally try to reply to them).<strong>


	2. Looking Back from Retirement

**Chapter 2: Looking Back from Retirement **

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><p>Between fighting my first battle on Christophsis and my last on Endor I served first the Republic and then the Empire for a grand total of 25 years. Over that unpleasantly long period of service I fought, or at least ran from, droids, Geonosians, Talz, Sith, Jedi, rebels from every corner of the galaxy and countless other enemies with names I can't even pronounce, let alone spell. Of course my time in the army need not have ended with the destruction of the Death Star II and the route of our forces on Endor. I hear that there remains a bit of the Empire still out there somewhere, hanging on by its fingernails and calling itself the Imperial Remnant. I suppose there are some clone troopers (or I suppose nowadays I should say storm troopers) who would have tried to find their way to whatever is left of the high command and pledge them their allegiance. Well as far as I'm concerned the Empire can go and take a running jump!<p>

I'm enjoying my hard earned retirement on Coruscant and have no intention of ever putting myself back in the firing line, not for love nor credits, and that is final. However although I no longer spend my days ducking blaster bolts and praying that a thermal detonator isn't about to land in my lap, I suppose I'm still a soldier at heart, whether I like it or not. You see when you've been a solider you never forget; all it takes is for me to hear the tramp of a droids metal footsteps and I'm running for the nearest doorway shouting "take cover, clankers incoming!" Of course it'll turn out to be a cleaner-droid or a security-bot, and I then have to carry on my way down the street, trying to ignore the amazed stares of the shocked civilians around me.

Often it only takes a tiny sound or phrase or sometimes even a smell and your back in the past, but in the case of Order 66, it was something rather more solid that brought back my memories of that most terrible of nights. A few days ago I was walking through the city centre, not really thinking about where my feet were taking me (anyone who knows Coruscant well may think me a fool for this, but when you wear a blaster pistol at your hip, even the most daring of pick-pockets tend to give you a wide birth) and suddenly I found myself standing in the great plaza in front of the Jedi Temple. The place was a hive of activity; with countless workmen, stonemasons, carpenters, scaffolders, architects, engineers, artists, load-lifters and groundcars, all of them working at cross-purposes and all of them getting in each other's way. The place is being rebuilt at last and will shortly house the new Jedi Order. As far I can see that pretty much just consists of young Master Luke Skywalker and a handful of others at the moment, so I imagine the place is going to be pretty quiet.

I however barely noticed the scarcely controller chaos around me, my eyes drawn irresistibly towards the Temple itself. It towered over all of us, like a great grey mountain, managing to appear quiet and serene even now, with the pandemonium raging around it like a storm tossed sea. I no doubt would have continued to stand where I was, starring at the old home of the Jedi like a damned tourist, but I was suddenly pulled roughly from the past and dumped unceremoniously back in the present. "Oi get out of it!" bellowed a thickset Bothan driving a load-lifter carrying a dozen large engraved bronze doors "you got a death wish or something?"

I quickly took a step back to avoiding being crushed by the vehicle, shouted a few well chosen insults after the driver and then took my leave. It wasn't that I'd never seen the place before, far from it, I must have entered the Temple at least a dozen times during the Clone Wars. I had not however set eyes on it since the night of Operation Knightfall, as it came to be known (old Palpatine must have been _so_ pleased when he came up with that!). As I walked back to my apartment I could not shake the memories from my mind that had come flooding back; my fellow clones changed before by eyes into mindless killers, the strange echoes of blaster fire reverberating down the long marble corridors of the Temple, Skywalker reborn as Darth Vader and Rex, standing over Ashoka, as she sat huddled in a doorway.

Of course I also remember that night because I was almost decapitated or shot to ribbons any number of times, could very well have been lynched by my own men and had any number of other near death experiences. It's a strange thing really; over the years since Order 66 the number of those who survived that night, clones, Jedi and Temple staff, has steadily decreased. Some hunted down, others killed in battle and many more simply succumbing to old age. I doubt now whether there's more than a handful alive today that can say that they were there that night. I know two of them well, put I can't see either of them sitting down to write an account of it any time soon. So I suppose it falls to me to set down for prosperity the events of that dark night, as I saw them and as I came to understand them in later years. Once again I sit at the desk in my study, surrounded by the various trophies of battlefields far away and long ago, and wonder where to begin. I suppose I should start my tale in the mess hall of the 501st Legion, on a rather warm evening in midsummer, twenty five years ago...


	3. Incoming Transmission

**Chapter 3: ****Incoming Transmission**

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><p>I'm sure that everyone knows the basic sequence of events leading up to Order 66, so I shall not go into painstaking detail on the subject. Let it suffice to say that we'd been hammering the Separatists without mercy for months. Victory after victory was won, planets and whole star systems reclaimed for the Republic, Count Dooku and many other key Seps dead, and General Grievous at last cornered on Utapau. It seemed as if the end of the war was at last in sight and it was General Kenobi, and his faithful legion the 212th, that would have the rather dubious, in my own opinion, honour of going in after that mechanical monstrosity and killing him once and for all.<p>

In all honestly I didn't think the war would be ending anytime soon; after all there were still more confederate worlds than there were ones loyal to the Republic and the majority of the Sep council still drew breath. As for hunting down Grievous once and for all, well how many times had we heard that one before? I felt sure that the old droid commander would pull off another of his miraculous escapes, and all that Kenobi and the lads of the 212th would have to show for their victory would be causalities and lots of them. My fellow clones of the 501st were all bitterly disappointed of course that they weren't about to be sent to their deaths, especially because our legion was to be stationed well away from the action on Coruscant.

I on the other hand couldn't have been happier; not only would I be garrisoning the most secure planet in the galaxy, but I would also have easy access to the big city. This was my kind of campaigning; standing around doing nothing more life threatening than a bit of guard duty and sneaking off to bars and nightclubs whenever possible. I didn't know why we, a front line regiment, were being pulled back to defend the capital, but most likely there had been a terrorist scare or some such thing, and the senate and the civilians were feeling a bit jumpy. As it turned out of course my vision of what the foreseeable future had in store for me couldn't have been more wrong, but I was thankfully still blissfully unaware of the nightmare about to come crashing down on my like a collapsing AT-AT as I sat in the mass hall of the barracks complex assigned to us.

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><p>I was sipping from a large mug of Tarine tea (a rather unusual beverage that I acquired a taste for long ago on Christophsis) and hoping that the Senate would decide to keep us permanently stationed on Coruscant, when suddenly the halls public address system crackled into life. "<em>Stand by for incoming transmission<em>" droned the recorded voice in its usual monotone.

Silence fell almost at once and we sat or stood waiting to hear what was up. I don't know what I was expecting to hear, possibly that Utapau had been taken or that we were shortly to be packed off back to the front. Whatever it was that I had expected, it wasn't the voice that issued from the speakers around the room; dry, cracked and unmistakably cruel. It was the voice of Chancellor Palpatine himself, but I had no time to wonder why in the name of the Force the chancellor was dropping us a line, because I was too busy listening to what our sainted leader had to say. "Soldiers of the 501st Legion; the hour has come at last. Execute Order 66 immediately".

The moment that Palpatine finished speaking two things happened simultaneously. Firstly my head felt as if it had been cloven in two, my brain seemed to be writhing in agony. I almost fell out of my chair the pain was so intense. I could feel my mouth twitching and contorting as if it wanted to speak of its own accord. And then the moment passed and I sat gasping for breath, my eyes streaming and the dull pain in my head gradually reseeding. The second thing that happened, although I barely noticed it at the time thanks to my own condition, was that every single clone in the room stood to attention and said, in cold lifeless tones "yes my Lord, it will be done".

Clones are naturally precise and organized individuals, we're bread for it, but I'd never seen the men of the 501st move with more purpose and efficiency than they did now. Within seconds the food, drinks, card games and anything else that had been occupying my comrade's attention prior to the transmission was cleared away, and every trooper began to stream towards the mess halls exits. All this was done in complete silence; not a laugh, or joke, or a well meant insult anywhere. It was as if they were droids. Slowly and slightly hesitantly I got to my feet, my head still aching like hell, and stopped a private making purposefully towards the doors. "You there, Private...Splinter isn't it? What's going on?"

Private Splinter starred at me as if I'd just asked a Geonosian if he'd ever seen sand. "Order 66 has been initiated sir, we are to march on the Temple immediately". The man was now looking decidedly suspicious and it suddenly occurred to me that not being entirely up to speed on this particular order might well prove decidedly unhealthy.

"Well done private, just testing you" I said jovially, clapping him on the shoulder "good to see you're on the ball!"

Realization at last flooded the clones face and he began nodding vigorously "oh yes sir, I can't wait to have a crack at those filthy traitors sir!"

"Hmm naturally, just make sure you leave a couple for your old captain eh?" I replied cheerfully, whilst thinking "_what in the name of the bloody Force are you talking about?_"

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><p>As you'd imagine I was now seriously alarmed. I joined the crowd of clones flooding out of the mess hall and made my way to the command centre. I needed to speak to someone normal, someone who hadn't started acting like a badly programmed battle droid. Escaping from the eerily quiet corridors of the barracks complex I walked quickly into the room that we were using as our headquarters while stationed on Coruscant. Inside I found Captain Appo, Sergeant Voca and a dozen or so of the usual staff who operate the holo-projectors and are never to be seen without their datapads. Unfortunately the two people I had been most hoping to find there were absent, namely Commander Tano and Captain Rex. I suddenly remembered that they'd gone for a walk together an hour or so ago, planning to go shopping in Coruscant's galaxy famous market district or something. Everything in the HQ seemed quite normal at first, with everyone hurrying to and fro, a muttered curse from Voca as he looked at a holo-map of the city and Appo barking orders into his communicator. However it suddenly struck me that there <em>was <em>something wrong here; we were garrisoning a peaceful world and yet the command centre looked as if it was overseeing a battlefield!

Captain Appo noticed me at last and beckoned me over. "Damn good to see you Hawk old chap!" he barked in his usual brisk way. "We'll be moving out in half an hour, that is if the bloody engineers can have their tanks refuelled and rearmed in time!" He grimaced "I don't mind telling you that it's Force-Damn chaos around here, what with the commander turning out to be back-stabbing scumbag and all. I've been promoted by the way, you are now looking at the new Commander of the 501st".

I came and stood beside my new commanding officer, too stunned to either congratulate him on or begrudge him the promotion, and stared down at the holo-screen built into the table before us. Sure enough it showed a street map of the city; each park, factory and district all clearly marked. I could see the senate building, the main power generator and...the Jedi Temple. I stared, unable to believe what I was seeing. Thank the Force I was wearing a helmet, as without it Appo and Voca could hardly have failed t notice my mouth hanging open in horrified shock. Completely oblivious to my reaction the clone captain continued "we'll advance as soon as we can, down this boulevard _here_ I reckon, it looks wide enough. We can then converge on the plaza, set up a couple of AT-TE's to give us a bit of artillery support if we need it and then it'll be time to draw our blasters and clear out the traitorous scum the old fashioned way!" Grinning Appo turned to me and asked "what'd you think?"

What did I think? I was thinking that either I or everyone else seemed to have gone completely mad! My mind staggered under the weight of recently acquired information; the Jedi were traitors and we were being ordered to attack the Temple? Where the hell had this insanity sprung from? And then it hit me; the transmission, Order 66. It was as if Palpatine, with that one command, had triggered something in my comrades' brains, wiping their memories and rewriting their personalities as easily as if they were datatapes. Why hadn't I suffered the same fate? But then I remembered the terrible headache that I had suffered immediately after hearing the transmission. I was after all a defective clone, could it be that the agonizing pain had been caused by my brain attempting to obey the directive, discovering that my mind was incompatible with it and then, after a brief struggle simply giving up? I didn't know, and I still don't, but it struck me then and now as the most logical explanation.

What I did know however was that I had to find Rex and Ashoka before it was too late. If Rex had not yet heard the transmission, being away from the base at the time of its broadcast, and if I could get to him in time I might somehow be able to prevent the change from occurring. And before you all start going misty eyed and cooing "you see, Hawk isn't just a self interested coward after all", hold your horses! I'd seen the Jedi at work many a time before and had no wish to be on the receiving end of their fury. Then again I'd seen the 501st cut their way through vast hordes of droids without breaking a sweat. The way I saw it was that whatever happened when these two deadly fighting forces were pitted against each other the outcome would not be pretty. My best chance of survival was to get as far away from the impending battle as I could and if possible join forces with two extremely competent friends. What's more I was suddenly struck by a perfect excuse for doing so.

I folded my arms and looked down critically at the battle plan drawn out by Commander Appo. At last I turned to my fellow officer and said "I think it'll work old friend. I feel sure that by morning every Jedi cur will be dead". I took of my helmet and then frowned "however..."

Appo glanced from the map to me "however? What is it old chap?"

"Well the thing is that I happen to know of at least one Jedi that will not be in the Temple when we launch our attack; are former commander, Padawan Ahsoka Tano".

"Damn!" exclaimed Sergeant Voca.

"You don't happen to know where the little traitor is by any chance?" asked Appo hopefully.

I smiled a cruel smile "I do indeed, and I would like to suggest that I should seek her out personally and deal with her myself".

Appo gave me an admiring look "who many men will you need?"

"I shall do it better alone"

At this Appo's expression of respect changed to something approaching reverence, gave me a stiff salute and said "good luck Hawk, watch yourself, she's a quick one that youngling brat".

Well there I was; hurrying along the corridors of our barracks and heading for the market district as quickly as I could. At least I had got myself out of the main attack on the Temple, but now I had to find Rex and Ahsoka...before it was too late.

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><p>[<strong>Author's Note:<strong> The newly promoted Commander Appo survived the storming of the Jedi Temple; although he was badly wounded, and went on to lead the 501st with distinction. He was however killed a year later on Kashyyyk by a rogue Jedi. Sergeant Voca (by then a captain) was promoted to the rank of commander after Appo's death. He too fell soon afterwards, ambushed by rebels in the Ghost Nebula.]


	4. My Second Headache

**Chapter 4: ****My Second Headache**

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><p>Even as I strode through the checkpoint that marked the exit to the military compound that was temporarily housing the 501st Legion I could see signs of our mobilization. Platoon after platoon of troopers were forming up, each clone in full battledress. Their white armour gleamed scarlet in the last rays of the setting sun, creating the illusion that each man was drenched in blood. I shuddered as I passed them, that was an image I didn't want to dwell on. As well as the troopers the engineers, despite Captain Appo's scepticism, were out in force. Half a dozen hulking AT-TEs lumbered ponderously into position, like great bull banthas preparing to do battle for a mate, whilst a squadron of AT-RTs, moving nimbly around men and machines, looked as if they were already poised and ready to move out. Clearly I didn't have much time before my comrades launched their attack on the Jedi Temple and I wanted to be a long way away when the blasters bolts started flying.<p>

I passed the sentries, returning their salutes, and then started in the direction of Coruscant's sprawling market district. I prayed that Rex and Ahsoka had indeed followed their original plan and decided to visit the famous shops and bazaars, because if they'd decided on something else I wouldn't have a hope in hell of ever finding them. You may be wondering why I didn't simply activate my comlink and contact them immediately. I dismissed this possibility straight away however, as I knew that at a time like this all channels of communication would be being heavily monitored and I couldn't risk anyone getting wind of the fact that I hadn't fallen for Palpatine's little mind tricks. The temptation to run was hard to resist, but I mastered the urge, as there's nothing more likely to start a panic among civilians than a running uniform. I made do with a quick march, elbowing protesting civvies out of the way, and sooner than I had expected found myself passing brightly coloured stalls and attractive window displays.

I was however painfully aware that even if Rex and Ahsoka had come to the market district, as I fervently hoped they had, locating them in this sprawling mess would be far from easy. I had little choice but to ask shopkeepers and passing shoppers if they'd seen "a clone officer, with blue markings on his armour, and a Togruta girl, about _so_ high?"

I got either negatives or responses along the lines of "I saw a Twi'lek earlier, is that any good?" I'd almost given up all hope when a little old lady nodded "oh yes young man, I saw those two alright".

"Where, when?" I asked eagerly.

"Only a few minutes ago; they were walking up there" she indicated a narrower street with her walking stick. She smiled up at me like a cheerful wizened monkey "they did make a handsome couple".

With a hasty thank you I hurried away in the direction the old lady had said she had last seen my quarry heading. This new street was rather quieter than the one I had just left, allowing me to see further ahead of me through the throngs of evening shoppers. However no matter how hard I looked I could see neither the white helmet nor the set of montrals that I had so hoped to glimpse in the distance. I was about to accost yet another civilian when suddenly I both heard and spotted something. There was a tiny alleyway on my right and down it, in the semi darkness; I thought I could make out a white shape and the sound of voices. I crept along the alley, keeping to the shadows and finally ended up standing in a doorway perhaps ten feet away from two people who were unmistakably Rex and Ahsoka.

The young Jedi sat on a porch step, her head in her hands and her small shoulder shaking with silent sobs. Rex, his helmet discarded, towered over her, still and silent like a white clad statute. A horrible thought occurred to me; I was too late, Rex was about to draw his blaster and blow Ahsoka's brains out. However before I could even think what action (if any) I should take I was _decisively_ proved wrong. Rex knelt down beside the crying girl and put his arms around her, saying soothingly as he did so "I will never let anyone hurt you Ahsoka, that's a promise. I'll always have your back".

Ahsoka raised her eyes to him and murmured through her tears "I know" before returning his embrace. They stayed like that for some time while I looked on in stupefied amazement. I mean to say, Rex, who'd have thought it? He may never have been much of a one for protocol, unlike some clones I've known, but I'd always had him down as more of a highly skilled grunt than anything else. I suppose, now I thought about it, he had demonstrated quite an unusual degree of free will when compared to your average trooper, but all the same...he would have been the last clone I'd have expected to fall in love with a Jedi. Oh yes, they may not have said so in so many words, but it didn't take someone with Master Yoda's mental facilities to see it a mile away. I was a man of the galaxy after all! What I was finding harder to fathom was that it would seem that Rex and Ahsoka had got wind of the attack on the Jedi Order, hence the tears. But if so how had Rex resisted when the rest of the men of the 501st had not?

Well there was only one way to find out, stepping out of my doorway I said "Captain Rex, Commander Tano, I'm glad I've found you".

Now I'd known Rex for two years, although it felt more like twenty, and on many occasions I'd seen him move with superhuman speed. I once saw the man fight a droid commando in hand-to-hand combat and win, and those things move like greased podracers! However I never saw Rex move faster than he did now. Spinning round he leapt at me in a virtually flat trajectory, his left shoulder connecting hard with my chest and his right fist smashing into my face. If I hadn't been wearing a helmet I'd have got a concussion! I was knocked clean off my feet and found myself sprawling on my back, Rex's boot placed firmly on my chest and his blaster pointed directly at my head. Leaning down towards me, his face a grim mask of fury, he snarled "you won't touch her!"

My head spinning and feeling as if I'd just been punched by an enraged wookiee, I managed to croak "Rex it's me, damn it, Hawk!"

To this Rex nodded, still glowering, "yes Hawk I know who you are, and I know who I am, and" here he pointed towards Ahsoka with his free hand "I know who she is! She, Hawk, is Commander Ahsoka Tano, a hero of the Republic and no traitor!"

"I know that!" I snapped back.

"You...what?" asked Rex, completely wrong footed.

"I said I know she's no traitor!"

Rex exchanged glances with Ahsoka, who had come to stand beside him. At last he said suspiciously "if you don't think she's an enemy of the Republic that means you must have resisted Order 66. How did you do that?"

Here was where we hit a bit of a snag. I wasn't overly keen on telling Rex and Ahsoka that I was a defective coward and fraud, but I had to say something. In the end I decided to go against the grain and tell the truth, or at least part of it. "I've never told anyone this before, but I have rather more free will than I should. In fact I have complete free will; I obey my orders because I choose to, not because I am compelled to do so".

"So you're not here to try to kill me?" asked Ahsoka.

"No, I came here to warn you!" That was sort of true, for a given value of _true_.

"Oh...well I'll...um...help you up then" said Rex in a rather embarrassed way, offering me his hand.

Taking it I climbed slowly to my feet and then slid a hand underneath my helmet to try to gage if any long term damage had been done. "Honestly Rex, you could've just drawn your pistol and told me to put my hands up; you didn't have to knock my head off! You damn near broke my nose!"

"Sorry Hawk, but better safe than sorry eh?" answered Rex, clapping me on the shoulder apologetically.

Suddenly something occurred to me "hang on a second, I could well ask you the same question! How did _you_ resist Order 66?"

Before Rex could answer Ahsoka said "because I told him that I loved him". I couldn't really think of an answer to that so she continued. "Because I love Rex and he loves me, he was...sort of...able to fight it I suppose".

"And" added Rex "I suppose I've always been an independent thinker. That made it easier to combat the directive, but it wasn't easy".

As Rex and Ahsoka started grinning inanely at each other I felt like saying "_love? That's it?_" People like to bash on about how love conquers all but in my experience it's emotions like fear, hate and greed that really make the difference in this galaxy. Always have, always will. But then again I'm an old cynic, what do I know? Right now it didn't matter how Rex had prevented himself being transformed into a mindless psychopath, what mattered was getting as far away from the looming battle as possible. "Look" I said, snapping the lovebirds out of their reverie "when I left the compound the newly promoted Commander Appo and Sergeant Voca were getting ready to march on the Temple. That was forty minutes ago at least, the attack must have started by now".

"Who's in command of the attack?" asked Rex "Appo?"

I hesitated. Appo was technically now a commander, but an attack this big would usually be coordinated by a General. However as Skywalker, the general of the 501st, was a Jedi the Legion was going to be missing its top brass. At last I shrugged "I suppose he must be, unless Palpatine's issuing orders to him directly". None of us were to know at the time of course that it was the chancellor's new apprentice who was the one leading the attack.

Rex, a seasoned tactician, didn't look convinced. "Yeah maybe, but that sounds a bit top heavy to me..."

"Who cares who's in command?" shouted Ahsoka "we need to get over there right now!"

"We need to _what_?" I squawked in horror.

"I said we need to get over there. We've got to try to help the Order!"

I threw Rex an imploring look, hoping that he was about to tell his new girlfriend that what she was suggesting would be nothing less than signing our own death warrants. However love apparently is blind (at least to all tactical sense at any rate) because Rex just smiled at Ahsoka and, placing a hand on her shoulder, said "as I've always said commander; I've got your back, no matter what".

Now as you all know I've always made a habit of thinking extremely disparaging things about those around me, but I usually keep these views to myself. However now I just had to say something. "Look this is all very heart-warming and all that, but it doesn't change the fact that going anywhere near the Jedi Temple is suicide. An entire legion is no doubt pouring into the building even as we speak. We'd be cut down before we could even get inside!"

"Not necessarily" answered Ahsoka cryptically "there's a secret passage, running underneath the Temple from the old disused sewers. No one knows about it except Masters Yoda, Jocasta Nu and Tera Sinube. Sinube is an old friend of mine, he told me about it. It's sealed of course but I think I could find it and I _know _I could open it". Here she patted her lightsaber affectionately.

Rex rubbed his hands together "well that sounds like our best bet, we'd better get going".

I looked from the clone captain to the Togruta Jedi, appalled "just because we can find a way in doesn't make any difference! Even if this tunnel exists and we do get inside the Temple, all that'll mean is that we can die in more comfortable surroundings. We won't be able to change anything!"

Ahsoka small face was set in a look of steely determination "maybe we can't save the Order, maybe the Temple will burn. But if we can save just one Youngling, if we can save anyone, then it'll be worth the risk".

Of course all that '_we fight to protect the weak_' and '_we lay down our lives for the helpless_' stuff is just what the medical droid ordered for the likes of Rex and Ahsoka. Personally I couldn't care less about the weak and helpless (unless that weak and helpless person happens to me of course, in which case I'm all for charity).

"Come on Hawk let's go" said Rex stooping to pick up his helmet from the porch where Ahsoka had been seated and holstering his blaster.

Now I could have simply refused and revealed myself as the gutless coward that I am. It wouldn't really have mattered, not now. Rex and Ahsoka would shortly be either on the run or more likely dead. They therefore would be in no position to report to the High Command of the Grand Army of the Republic that I wasn't fit to clean military latrines, let alone be a respected and high ranking officer. However I suppose I'd got so used to safeguarding my fraudulent reputation for heroism that the idea of letting anyone know what kind of craven creature lived behind the mask that I'd worn for so long just seemed unthinkable. It may sound mad but at that moment the idea of telling Rex and Ahsoka (the closest people I had to friends) that I wouldn't walk with them into the rancor's den seemed even less appealing than actually doing it. Gritting my teeth and murmuring a silent prayer to the Force I said at last "very well then Commander Tano, lead on".

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><p>[<strong>Author's Note: <strong>Because Captain Hawk was not present when Captain Rex received the transmission from Palpatine about Order 66 and because he did not witness Rex overcoming his (for want of a better word) programming, he understandably does not give a very thorough account of the captains struggle. For a better description of Rex's free will triumphing over his built-in loyalty to the chancellor see my earlier fic _The Last Separatists_, Chapter 2: _A Clones Choice_].


	5. The Tunnel and the Odeon

**Chapter 5: The Tunnel and the Odeon **

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><p>Ahsoka drew her lightsaber and then hesitated; glancing up and down the empty street, making sure that we were not being observed. She needn't have bothered as although it was still early evening Coruscant's usually crowded streets were now deathly quiet. We were only a few blocks away from the Jedi Temple now, which rose above the skyline in all its sombre majesty, and the sounds and sights of battle raging around it had driven the civilians away. The sky was turned blood red by the great fires that were now raging out of control in one of the Temple's high towers and a cloud of black smoke a mile high was drifting across the city. The occasional heavy thump of exploding shells and the crash of collapsing masonry, combined with the background crackly of blaster fire.<p>

Now that Ahsoka had made certain that we were not being watched she activated her lightaber and used its superheated blade to melt an old manhole cover that led to the now disused sewers beneath the city. When the edge of the metal circle cut by the Jedi's weapon ceased to glow red hot we began our decent. Climbing down an ancient rusty ladder we at last found ourselves in a broad oval tunnel. The walls of the passageway were testament to the impressive age of the sewers, built not of ferroconcrete or permacrete, but of brick. That meant that these drains were very old indeed, older than the city above them perhaps. Any waste that had once been carried away by the sewer was long gone; thank the Force, so we didn't have to worry about getting our feet wet.

"This way" whispered Ahsoka quietly, as she led the way down the passageway in the general direction of the Temple. It would have been pitch black down there if it hadn't been for the glow of the Jedi's lightsaber and the high-power torch beams of the helmets of Rex and I. These lights somehow seemed puny and out of place in the crushing darkness around us. After once spending several days lost in the bowls of Geonosis, dodging packs of feral animated corpses, I'm not overly keen on either the dark or underground tunnels. Personally I think I can be excused these phobias given their origin.

* * *

><p>After what felt like hours, but what in reality can't have been more than a few minutes, Ahsoka stopped beside a section of wall that looked at first glance no different than any other. However as I leaned closer I perceived, in the dull green glow of the Jedi's blade, as symbol carved into the wall, almost warn away to nothing. It resembled a wreath, with a thin spike running through it and three quarters of the way down the spike a six pointed star; the symbol of the Jedi Order. Ahsoka ran her hand over the tunnel wall as if looking for a secret door. If this was indeed what the young Jedi was hoping to find she was to be disappointed; the entrance to the hidden passageway had been sealed shut.<p>

"Stand back" breathed Ahsoka, a recommendation that both Rex and I quickly complied with. Clutching the hilt of her weapon in both hands she plunged her lightsaber into the wall and slowly began to cut her own entrance. The age old brickwork, virtually fossilized by the passing of the centuries, was no match for the Jedi's weapon; it melted like butter before the blade. Ahsoka cut us a large doorway through which the three of us passed into another corridor. Unlike the sewer we had just left this tunnel was square and built of a strange grey stone I couldn't put a name to. The tunnel had a slight incline to it and I realized that we were beginning our assent back to the surface.

As we proceeded I once again became aware of the sounds of battle. First all I could here were the muffled rumblings of collapsing ceilings or falling columns, but soon I could make out the sharp crack of blaster rifles, the distinctive hum of lightsabers and endless shouting, punctuated by the occasional scream. We had to be right under the Temple now; perhaps no more than a few feet away the battle raged above us. At last we came to the end of the tunnel and found a steep flight of warn stone steps leading upwards. The steps were so steep in fact that they more closely resembled a ladder than anything else and not an easily climbed one at that. We scrambled up the near vertical stairway in single file; Ahsoka leading, Rex right behind her and me bringing up the rear.

Suddenly Ahsoka stopped climbing. "Here we are" she whispered "we should be under the floor of the Odeon in the southwest corner of the Temple". Reaching up Ahsoka ran her hand over the stone above her, until at last she found what she'd been looking for; a small iron leaver. Grasping it firmly she grunted "OK here it goes" and pulled. No doubt whenever the secret tunnel had been originally built the mechanism to open the trapdoor would have been very smooth. Now however, having not been used for probably half a millennia, it was rather less so. Cog wheels groaned and the un-oiled hinges squeaked in protest as, fighting the rust of centuries, the door slowly and jerkily swung upwards into the Temple.

* * *

><p>I won't deny that I'd more than half expected a helmeted head to instantly appear above us, followed by a hail of blaster bolts, but thankfully nothing happened. Ahsoka smiled grimly at Rex and I before muttering "OK, follow me boys" and jumped upwards through the trapdoor. Rex quickly clambered out after her, followed reluctantly by yours truly. Just as Ahsoka had predicted, we found ourselves in a small Odeon amphitheatre, of the sort used by the Jedi for musical recitals, poetry readings and the giving of lectures. The auditorium was silent now, but not deserted. Clearly the 501st had already come through here. Several Jedi lay dead, some scattered around the floor of the arena, others lying sprawled in the rows of benches that rose up in tiers towards the ceiling. However the clones weren't getting it all their own way; perhaps a dozen armoured corpses lay where they had fallen in various states of dismemberment.<p>

The sounds of battle were close, but thankfully not immediate. It would seem that this sector of the Temple was no longer contested. Walking across to the body of one of his former comrades Rex stooped and picked up a DC-15A blaster rifle. I could have done the same thing of course, but I preferred to stick with my usual DC-17 pistol. It's easy to handle, packs quite a punch for its size and is light enough not to slow you down when you're running away. After Rex had checked the power cell on his newly acquired weapon he turned to Ahsoka and I, asking "well what's the plan?"

Suddenly I was struck by an idea, a fantastic glorious idea! Before Ahsoka could speak I said quickly "I reckon we should split up into two groups. You Rex and Ahsoka can go one way and I'll go the other. We can look for survivors, cover twice as much ground in half the time and meet up back here in say an hour".

Rex and Ahsoka both looked at me with the same expressions of stunned admiration that Commander Appo had worn earlier, when I offered to hunt down a dangerous Jedi traitor singlehandedly. "But Hawk, will you be alright by yourself" asked Rex.

"Of course I will" I answered, with an easy confident smile "don't worry about me. It's those innocent children you we must be concerned about now" I finished with a look of saintly piety that must have been positively revolting to see.

"Alright then, we'll split up. Meet us back here in an hour. And Hawk..." Ahsoka added, as I was on the point of striding away "thank you so much, you're a real friend".

Now as I set off in the opposite direction to my comrades you may well be saying to yourself "Hawk, risking his life for someone other than himself? Surely he'd want the protection of the best shot in the galaxy and an up and coming Jedi with a score to settle!" To this I simply reply that you do not yet understand the pure undiluted genius of my plan. If I was to happen upon a group of Jedi I would declare myself not under the control of Chancellor Palpatine and then direct them towards the secret tunnel entrance. If on the other hand I met a group of clones I would proclaim myself as Captain Hawk, Hero of the Republic, and then order them off in any direction other than the Odeon. Now if I was to stumble across a battle between clones and Jedis I would simply have to hang back until it became obvious who was winning and then throw my weight in on the side of the victors. Obviously I could not act in this unscrupulous way if I had been in the company of Rex and Ahsoka. I know; I am aware that even a Tusken Raider would consider me moral-less slime, but it is thanks to my complete lack of principles that I am still alive today. If it gives you any satisfaction my plan didn't work _quite_ as well as I'd hoped.


	6. Blood on the Marble

**Chapter 6: Blood on the Marble **

* * *

><p>I crept through the long marble corridors of the Jedi Temple, my trusty DC-17 blaster gripped tightly in my hand. Most of the clone captains I've known throughout my military career favour, as their weapons of choice, a brace of DC-17's. Personally I prefer to opt for a single pistol, using my free left hand to support my right one. I've always maintained that what you lose in terms of firepower you more than make up for in accuracy. With my weapon at the ready I walked slowly down broad hallways, across courtyards and through grand auditoriums. I met no living Jedi or clones, but I saw countless bodies. Old, young, human and alien, none had been spared. In some places the Jedi blackened and disfigured by blaster fire, lay alone, in others they were sprawled in groups. Sometimes they seemed to have died fighting back to back, or in corners, against walls, in small rooms or anywhere else that they thought might make a worthy site for a last stand. Besides the corpses the thing I noticed more than anything else that night was the blood. Because almost every floor was of marble the dark pools of liquid did not drain away, but instead lay everywhere, like sickening puddles after a heavy storm.<p>

I was at least happy about one thing; the sounds of fighting appeared to be slightly fainter than they had been a few minutes before. It would seem that the battle was decidedly still going on, but at least not in this part of the Temple. After perhaps ten or so minutes of searching I came to a small corridor off one of the main hallways. Leading off this side corridor were small rooms, each of which seemed to have been bedchambers. Here to the troopers of the 501st had been before me and done their terrible work. Each room held fresh horrors; young children, shot without mercy or compassion. Finally I came to the last door on the right side and I was about to press the activation panel, when I froze. Inside the room I could just make out whispering voices.

"I think they're all gone Cristina"

"Maybe they've moved to a different part of the Temple"

"We should make a run for it!"

"No way! We've got to stay here until help comes"

"Me want Master Mahn..."

"What if no one's coming? What if it's up to us to look after ourselves?"

"Don't say that Marlow, not in front of Jeni!"

I paused for a moment, unsure whether to simply walk away or open the door. The voices sounded as if they came from some of the Younglings Ahsoka had been so keen on saving, but on the other hand even a very young Jedi can be dangerous. If you think me fool let me just remind you of the case of Commander Appo; he was very nearly gutted by some slip of a Padawan, while out on one of the Temple's landing platforms and ended spending the best part of the next month in a bacta tank! However at last I reached out my free hand and cautiously activated the door, which slid silently aside.

The room I saw before me was identical to the dozens of others lining the corridor; a bedroom, sparsely furnished in the typical Jedi fashion. Against one wall was set a wardrobe, a washbasin and a desk, while the other side of the room was mostly taken up by a small bed. Sitting in a huddled group with their backs to the bed were three children, two girls and a boy. The younger of the girls, and of the group as a whole, was a tiny bright eyed Pantoran of perhaps four or five, who I took to be Jeni. The second girl, aged around nine, and the boy of roughly twelve were both human; presumably Cristina and Marlow respectively.

Very wisely the children had chosen to sit in total darkness, to lessen the chance of being discovered. This meant that when I activated the door the room and its three occupants were suddenly bathed in light. Their heads snapping round they stared at me, their eyes filling with fear at the sight of a clone officer, brandishing his sidearm. "They've come back" squeaked Cristina in terror "quick Marlow do it again!"

Marlow didn't need telling twice; the young man fixed me with a piercing stare and said in a clear commanding voice "there is nobody here, move on".

The kid was good, no doubt about that. His mind trick must have worked on the last lot of clones to have passed through here, thereby saving himself and his friends. I felt the tendrils of his persuasive power working their way into my brain, urging me to obey him. But I pushed back. The Jedi's famous mind powers can be beaten you know, if you have the will power for it. In my case you see I lived in constant fear that one of the many Jedis that I knew, Obi-Wan, Ahsoka, Skywalker and so on, might one day get curious and have a poke around inside my head. In doing so they would be certain to discover my cowardly nature and then the next thing I'd know I'd be being packed off back to Kamino for '_discontinuation_'. Therefore I was very careful to keep my mental barriers up at all times, meaning that I was able to fight the young Force-user's thrust into my consciousness. A long time after the events told here, many years after I had last seen a Jedi, I let my defences slip and I paid the price. I was the officer in command of a military checkpoint on Tatooine when, out of nowhere, an old man drove up in a landspeeder and sent a mind trick my way. I succumbed instantly, waved him through and then felt as if my brain had been put through a mangle. That's part of another story of course, but I tell it here simply to illustrate my point that it is not only a strong mind that helps you to resist Jedi tricks, it's also vital to be prepared.

"Not here to hurt you" I managed to grunt through gritted teeth, resisting the desire to walk away to another part of the Temple with difficulty. "Here with Padawan Tano".

The young Jedi exchanged glances with his still younger companions, hesitated for a moment and then released me from his mental grip. "But" he said slowly, his face a mask of distrust "you're a clone; you've all turned against us haven't you?"

Now that I once again felt as if my mind was my own I walked towards the three Younglings, holstering my pistol as I came. "It's a long story kid, but the short version is yes the clones have turned against the Jedi, Palpatine's brain washed them somehow. But I'm still on your side and I'm here with Padawan Ahsoka Tano to save you and anyone else that we can. By the way the names Hawk".

"Padi Soka?" asked Jeni, the youngest of the three, hopefully.

"That's right miss" I said bending and patting the little Pantoranon on the head affectionately. I've always liked children; perhaps it's because I don't feel obliged to keep up a charade around them.

Jeni giggled and then hid herself behind the older girl Cristina, who looked up at me and asked "what are we going to do now Hawk?"

"Do you know the way to the Odeon in the southwest of the Temple?" I asked, looking between Cristina and Marlow.

It was Marlow who answered first; "yes, we have seminars in there sometimes with Master Ki-Adi-Mundi".

I nodded "good, then Marlow I want you to get these young ladies to safety. They're your responsibility. When you get to the theatre just wait, sooner or later either I or Padwan Ahsoka and another friendly clone will come and join you. It might be a good idea to hide just inside the entrance to the tunnel until we get back". Marlow and Cristina both looked completely nonplussed at that, quite understandably. "You'll find an open trapdoor in the middle of the floor, it leads to the secret tunnel that Ahsoka, the other clone and I used to get into the Temple".

Marlow nodded, but Cristina asked hesitantly "but Mr. Hawk, why can't you go back with us?"

"Sorry but I've got to carry on looking for survivors, you'll be fine I promise. Just keep your eyes and ears open for patrols". Speaking of which something suddenly occurred to me. I went down on one knee so that I was at Jeni's eye level and said "now my little Jedi, how would you like to play a game?" Jeni's eyes sparkled with interest and I continued "I want you to hold on to Cristina's hand and keep your eyes tightly closed, and you can only open them when she tells you to OK? Do you think that you can do that for me?"

In answer Jeni grinned cheerfully and then clamped her eyes shut, screwing up her tiny blue face in concentration. Marlow and Cristina both looked out into the corridor, noticed the bodies strewn everywhere and the lakes of blood, and each turned very pale. "Thank you" Cristina whispered, taking the young girls hand in hers.

Marlow looked up at me, his face still white with shock, but now set with steely determination. "I won't let you down sir, I'll look after them".

"Well done soldier" I said saluting the Jedi. I walked them to the end of the dormitory corridor, bid them good luck and then continued on my way deeper into the Temple. What I had told the girl Cristina was partly true; I couldn't walk them back to the Odeon because I did still have to look for survivors. However I will admit that there was another less honourable reason for my choice to leave the children to walk back alone. If a patrol of clones was to come across me shepherding a group of Younglings around the Temple they'd know that I wasn't obeying Order 66 and would I either shoot me on the spot or wait and then execute me later! Yes there was defiantly an element of self preservation in my actions.


	7. An Unwelcome Saviour

**Chapter 7: An Unwelcome Saviour **

* * *

><p>I kept following the wide corridor until I came to a flight of stone steps leading up to the next floor of the Temple. Having climbed the steps I suddenly became uncomfortably aware that the battle for the Temple seemed closer than it had before. The sounds of screaming, explosions and endless blaster fire intensified until it reached a crescendo I'd rarely heard the like of. At last I discovered its source when the right hand wall of the corridor beside me gave way to elegant arches. Between these arches were bronze railings allowing Jedi, in happier times, to stand in the gallery I was walking through and look down into the large peaceful courtyard below. The courtyard now however was far from serene; it was a hideous battlefield. The room into which I was looking was the size of a cathedral and it was filled with nothing but Jedi and clones, each side at each other's throats. Blaster fire was so thick that the air seemed to be rent by glowing flashes of lightning in a fierce storm, in places combatants were using the bodies of the dead as barricades behind which to shelter and here there Jedi Knights and clone troopers rolled together on the floor, blasters and lightsabers forgotten, each tearing at the other with fists, boots and teeth. The savagery of the violence and the surreal horror of seeing former allies and friends killing each other in such monstrous ways put me in mind of a vision into Hell.<p>

* * *

><p>There was nothing I could do, and nothing that I wanted to do, but turn around and hurry along the new corridor in which I found myself. As the sounds of the nightmarish conflict began to fade behind me I became aware of a new sound. The passageway that I now stood in had clearly been the site of a brutal skirmish, with dead Jedi and clones lying everywhere. However unlike many of the areas of the Temple I had seen thus far the bodies of clones seemed to outnumber those of the Jedi; was it possible that here at least the Jedi had won their fight? My question was answered when I at last came to a doorway. The door itself had been blown off its hinges and lying sprawled in the entrance was a clone sergeant. He was missing his head. Inside I could hear two voices; that of a young man and an old one.<p>

"Master we must go before more come back"

"No my faithful Padawan, _you_ must go and leave me here". This was followed by a choked cough and then a half laugh "those clone blasters pack quite a punch don't they?"

"No!" screamed the young man, clearly distraught "Master you've got to try! I'll...I'll carry you!"

"What and you half my size? My boy have I taught you nothing of logic?"

I didn't like the sound of the Padawan's voice one little bit; I'd heard voices like that on the battlefield before. They belonged to men who had been pushed to the very limit of their endurance and the slightest nudge would be enough to push them over into insanity. As I debated what to do, whether to declare myself or creep away, I accidentally stepped on a piece of broken glass. My standard issue army boot crushed the shard to splinters, producing a _crack_ that sounded ear-splitting in that quiet corridor. The voices stopped at ones and then, just as I was praying that the Jedi might be about dismiss the sound, the young man shouted hoarsely "Who's there?"

Well that's torn it, I thought to myself with a grimace. I had no choice now but to show myself and hope for the best. I didn't want to take any chances and so I holstered by blaster and then said very slowly and carefully "I'm here to help you".

There was silence for a second before the young Jedi shouted "thank the Force! Please you must help me to carry my Master to safety".

Cautiously I stepped around the doorway and entered the room. The apartment had perhaps been some sort of office; there were a few desks, chairs and one wall was completely lined with holo-books. The room also contained a few dead clones, three Jedi corpses and the two living Jedi who I had been listening to. The Jedi Master was an old Duros and lay propped up against an over turned desk, green blood oozing thickly through his robes from a deep wound in his side. His Padawan was a Rodian, who was also dripping blood from a blaster hole in his upper thigh. He was kneeling beside his Master and saying "look help's come at last, don't worry Master, I'm going to get you out of here". He turned towards me smiling "thank the Force you've come, now hel...holy Force you're a clone!"

I raised my hands placating "it's alright; I'm on your side!" I shouted, but it was already too late. As I said just now sometimes a soldier can be pushed so far and then all it takes is one little shove.

The Rodian drew his lightsaber, activated the glowing green blade and charged. "Get away from my Master you mutinous back-stabber" he screamed shrilly. I was very lucky that the Padawan was wounded, meaning that he was rather less graceful than he doubt usually would have been. As it was he lurched towards me, swinging his lightsaber back and forth as he came, more in the manner of an angry peasant waving a flaming torch than a Jedi warrior wielding his noble weapon. I backed away "no stop, oh Force no, please no, I'm no traitor!" I howled in terror. The humming blade scythed through the air towards me and if I'd been an inch closer the blade would have sliced me clean in two (and believe me that is just a figure of speech, when someone is sliced in two it is anything but clean!). As it was the tip of the lightsaber only scored a molten gash across my breastplate, releasing a fowl stench of burning plastoid. Having missing with his initial slash the Rodian raised his weapon above his head in both hands, this time intending to decapitate me. For once in my life my survival instincts failed to kick in; I simply stood rooted to the spot, my eyes wide with horror and my life flashing before my eyes. All things considered I was left with the distinct impression that it had been completely rubbish.

* * *

><p>Suddenly, as the lightsaber was hissing down through the air towards me, the Rodian Padawan was lifted clean off his feet by a hail of blaster bolts impacting against his scrawny chest and smashed against the wall of the office. A moment later and a second barrage of fire whistled past my ear perforated the wounded Jedi Master as he lay helpless. Turning around I found the doorway behind me completely packed with clones. It seemed at first as if the whole Grand Army had turned up to save my skin at the eleventh hour, but I soon realized it was in fact a fireteam; four troopers led by an NCO. I recognized the non-com as one Corporal Cross. Recovering as well as I could I inclined my head politely to my saviours, "thank you Cross, thank you gentleman, you're intervention was most timely".<p>

Corporal Cross saluted "you alright sir?"

"Fine thank you corporal" I said, whilst feeling far from it. Slightly unsteadily I walked towards the broken body of the Duros Master, lying sprawled in a growing lake of his own green blood. Stooping I retrieved his discarded lightsaber and slipped it into one of the numerous equipment pouches on my belt. I know it must seem like the ultimate act of dishonour, robbing the dead and all that, but when you've been a soldier for as long as I have, taking what you need from a defeated enemy is just second nature. Besides, well I mean to say, it's not like you find lightsabers lying around everyday now is it?

Cross looked around the room, littered with the bodies of dead clones and fallen Jedi. "Glad we got here when we did captain. We heard shouting, came running and burst in here just in time to put this slime out of his misery" he finished, kicking the crumpled body of the Rodian Padawan. Looking back up at me he added "two less Jedi scumbags eh sir?"

"Quite corporal" I returned, with as much hatred and conviction to the cause in my voice as I could muster on short notice. "And now I feel as if we have wasted enough time here; I shall continue to my objective and I suggest you do the same".

Cross gave me a parade ground quality salute "right you are sir!"

It seemed as if I'd got away with it; I'd run slap bang into a clone patrol and they hadn't realized that I was helping the Jedi. They'd even saved my life and had not apparently realized that the 'shouting' they'd heard had in fact been me screaming for mercy. It seemed as if for once luck was on my side. At that moment an urgent voice erupted from the clone NCO's communicator, "Cross, you reading me Cross, come in!"

Immediately the corporal raised his wrist communicator to his mouth and responded "yes Sergeant Primer, reading you loud and clear sir".

"Get the other half of the squad over here on the double; we've come across a pocket of resistance!"

"Confirmed, where do you need us sarge?"

"Some sort of theatre, southwest corner of the Temple" answered Sergeant Primer, causing the bottom to drop out of my stomach. They'd found the Odeon and the resistance could only be Ahsoka, Rex, my three Younglings and any other poor souls that the Padawan and the captain had managed to scrape together.

As if the dratted sergeant didn't feel like he'd wrecked my day enough he added "they're a pretty tough bunch, bring along anyone you can scrounge along the way".

Corporal Cross's helmet immediately turned towards me and he said cheerfully "don't work Primer; I've just met up with Captain Hawk. We'll be along as soon as we can!" Signing off he laughed "I almost feel sorry for the filth, they won't know what's hit em' when we get there, right sir?"

I managed a weak chuckle "I'm sure they won't corporal" and then added, because I had no choice "well troopers let's move out". As we sprinted back along the corridors I had crept through so cautiously, I felt as if someone had pulled the world out from under my feet and I was now falling into a hopeless abyss. I had no idea what I was going to do or what on Kamino was going to happen next. All I knew for sure was that whatever the outcome, it would not be good. I was entirely correct.

* * *

><p>[<strong>Author's Note: <strong>For those that don't know; a '_fireteam_' is a military term to mean half a squad, led by either a sergeant or a corporal, and generally numbers between 4-8 soldiers (depending on the size of the squad). The practice of breaking down a squad into two halves is a popular tactic in urban warfare, as the smaller units are more flexible and manoeuvrable, ideal for close quarter fighting.]


	8. How I Got My Limp

**Chapter 8: How I Got My Limp**

* * *

><p>Very unwillingly I led the clone fireteam back towards the Odeon, from which I had set out to look for survivors what felt like a lifetime ago. As we approached I became aware for the hundredth time that night that the crackle of blasters was intensifying once more. As I and the four clones under my command came around the final corner the entrance to the theatre at last came into view. It took me a while to work out how many troopers there were, where they had been deployed and what the enemy (that is to say Rex, Ahsoka and co.) were up to. Rather than tell you the situation as I heard it, bellowed at me by a slightly shell-shocked Sergeant Primer, I shall explain it to you as I at last came to understand it (after a good deal of shouting "what?").<p>

Here was how the battle lines were drawn; we had a combined force of fourteen clones, comprised of my fireteam of four, the other half of the squad under Primer, five other troopers from who knew where and last and by all means least me. Most of the force was currently deployed crouching just outside the entrance to the Odeon, occasionally taking pot shots around the door at the Jedi. Three clones however had been sent up a side stairway and had managed to occupy the highest tier of benches on one side of the theatre. From here, using the seats in the row in front of them as cover, they were endeavouring to keep the Jedi pinned down and were doing a pretty good job of it so far. The small side stairs, which were presumably intended to be used as a fire escape for the audience in the Odeon in the case of an emergency, was a nightmare for the Jedi. If there had been only the main entrance to guard against, why a platoon could have held off an army! However as it was the meagre Jedi force was in a hopeless situation, cut off from the tunnel and any possibility of escape.

* * *

><p>I apologize if I have poorly explained the tactical situation and made it seem madly complicated, but believe me it was much worse having it shouted in your ear and missing every other word because it was drowned out by the bark of a blaster rifle or a nearby explosion. When at last Sergeant Primer had finished deafening me he shouted "anyway it's good to have you with us captain, what's the plan?"<p>

What's the plan, I thought furiously, I don't have a Force damn plan! Or did I...A mad scheme had just surfaced in the corrupt conniving cesspit that is my mind. It was dishonourable and traitorous, but could potentially wipe the slate clean and put me back to where I was before this monstrous night began. Very unlike my usual brand of ideas, the priority of which is usually to keep me as far away from the battle as humanly possible, this harebrained plot would be risky in the extreme. Come to that, it would be near suicidal! Turning to Sergeant Primer I began to issue orders, in quick authoritative voice "Primer, I want you and seven of the men to hold this position just outside the door to the theatre. I shall take two troopers and reinforce our position overlooking the Jedi. When I give the order the five of us deployed in the back benches of the Odeon will open fire on the Jedi, forcing them to take cover. At exactly the same moment you will lead your men in a frontal assault. The scum shall be trapped and then annihilated!"

"Nice plan sir" said Primer saluting, and you know what, I think he meant it. He was actually happy about the prospect of running into the waiting arms of a dozen cornered and incensed Jedi. Just goes to show what I've always said; madness and bravery are similar enough to be twins!

With a final nod to the sergeant I turned and ran up the back stairway, followed by two clones; one being Corporal Cross and the other a regular trooper, the name of which I never knew. At the top of the stairs I ducked to avoid an incoming blaster bolt, no doubt originating from dear old Rex's weapon, and then headed for the back row of benches, where three troopers were, as I have mentioned, already making life uncomfortable for the Jedi. Looking around at my assembled command I began the second phase of my battle plan. "Spread out men, I don't want the enemy taking out half my force with a lucky grenade or something. And move up, you three troopers, advance to the next tier of benches". Obediently and efficiently the soldiers did as they were told, leaving me crouched in cover, with two clones on my right and three directly in front of me.

I licked my lips nervously. I realized now that my plan was not mad, it was _insane_! I suppose I could have changed my mind even then; I could have tried to come up with something different, played for more time or just hid under the nearest bench and gibbered in terror. Anything would have been better than the idiotic grave I was about to dig for myself! After a final whispered prayer to the Force to save my unworthy skin I spoke into my communicator "Sergeant Primer, Corporal Cross; stand by".

"Yes Captain Hawk"

"Confirmed captain"

I took a deep breath and then shouted "now!" It was as if time slowed to a crawl and suddenly I was able to observe everything in minute detail. Across the amphitheatre and several tiers lower than my own position I could see the Jedi force; lightsabers flashing to-and-fro to deflect incoming fire and Rex, easily discernable by his white and blue helmet, behind cover and blazing away with his dual pistols Below me, again as if in slow motion, I watched as Sergeant Primer and his troopers burst through the doorway to the Odeon and charged across the arena floor towards the Jedi. The clones to my right and in the row of benches in front of me were taking aim and beginning to pour down a deadly rain upon their enemies. It was now or never; I had less than a handful of seconds to try to carry out perhaps the least thought through, maddest, stunt of my inglorious carrier.

* * *

><p>I opened fire with my DC-17 and my first shots found there marks. I've said before I think, in earlier instalments of my memoires, that there is one thing at least that I have no cause to lie about; and that is my skill with a blaster. I put three bolts straight into backs of the three troopers in front of me in less than three seconds. At such close range each blast punched fist sized holes through their armour. Corporal Cross just had time to turn his helmet towards me, no doubt wearing an expression of shocked amazement, when I put a shot straight between his eyes, blowing off most of his head. I've killed hundreds of men, aliens and droids in my time, and I rarely lose a wink of sleep over any of them. However there are a handful of ghosts who haunt my nightmares and Cross is one of them. He probably hadn't been a bad person before Order 66 twisted his mind, no more than any other clone that was transformed into murdering psychopaths by that monstrous command. But it was him or me, and when all's said and done that's all there is to it.<p>

It was now however that I fell at the last hurdle, for the final clone, the unknown trooper who I had climbed the stairs with, had started to react the moment that my first bolt struck home. Stationed on the right hand side of Cross he reacted so fast that he could have given even Rex a run for his money. Even as I brought my pistol to bear on him he sprang at me like a leaping Force damn nexu, crashing into me and knocking the weapon from my hand.

I don't know why he didn't just try to shoot me; perhaps it was because he was using a long barrelled rifle and didn't trust himself to hit a target at such close range or maybe it was just instinct. Whatever the reason it didn't change the fact that we were now rolling on the floor together, and that he was winning! You may think that we clones were identical, but we weren't. Technically we _should_ have been evenly matched; after all we were the same man. However the clone I was now fighting had clearly done little else since birth but train and pump iron, and consequently was considerably stronger than I. His hands were around my throat in a heartbeat and, try as I might, I couldn't shake him free.

I was lucky however, the trooper strangling me was overconfident and now that he felt certain of victory he made a critical mistake. He started talking, something a true professional will never do in combat; "You traitor! You backstabbing scum! You would betray your own brothers!" he snarled an inch from my face. While he had been distracted by his own roaring I had been feverishly worming my hand between us, trying desperately to find something; something that I at last managed to seize and activate. The lightsaber's blue blade passed through the breastplate of my attacker, lanced through his chest and erupted from his back as effortlessly as if it was cutting paper. He shrieked in agony, spasmed horribly for a few seconds and then lay still.

For the second time that night the foul smell of burning plastoid washed over me, mixed now however with the far viler stench of burnt flesh. Shuddering I deactivated my ill-gotten Jedi weapon and then pushed the corpse of the trooper off me. I staggered to my feet, retrieving as I did so my dropped DC-17, and looked down into the Odeon. There were figures moving around on the arena floor of the theatre, but they were all Jedi, save for one familiar captain. Without the covering fire from on high the frontal attack had been utterly destroyed and, as far as I could see, with no casualties to the Jedi. I advanced slowly down through the benches, breathing hard and taking off my helmet as I came.

* * *

><p>A pretty female Jedi with a quite remarkably attractive figure looked up as I approached and immediately drew her lightsaber. "There's another of them, get back!"<p>

Quickly Ahsoka jumped forward and explained the situation "no Pix this is Captain Hawk, he's a friend".

"Yes he is!" said Cristina and Marlow together, loudly and defiantly.

"Oh" said the young Jedi, apologetically lowering her blade and giving me an embarrassed grin "sorry captain, my bad".

I inclined my head politely and gave the attractive Jedi my best charming smile "no hard feelings Miss...Pix was it? Your reaction was quite understandable given the circumstances". Perhaps it was mere wishful thinking on my part, but I could have sworn I detected a slight blush on the girl's cheeks and a small smile as she turned quickly away.

Rex, who also had removed his helmet after the battle, gave me a look of incredulous respect. "You were in command of that attack weren't you? You got them to launch a frontal attack and promised them fire support". I nodded. "And then you took out all the clones in the top tier benches; _all_ of them!"

I shrugged and said in a well rehearsed casual voice "well you know I hoped it would give you a fighting chance".

Not for the first time since I'd known her Ahsoka leapt at me and proceeded to give me a bone shattering hug "you've saved us again Hawk! What is this like the hundredth time?"

With the little breath left in my body I managed to say "glad I was able to help, don't mention in it". By this point in my career you see I had the modest hero routine down to a science, and brave madmen like Rex and daring lunatics like Ahsoka just couldn't get enough of it.

"Well then" said Rex, when at last Ahsoka had released me "let's get going, no point waiting around here for reinforcements to turn up". This recommendation was greeted with hearty agreement from all parties, all save one.

"I'm staying old chap" I said in voice that I hoped would convey that I wanted nothing better than to follow them back down into the sewers and then to go on the run, with the entire 501st on our tails. Before Rex, Ahsoka, Marlow, Cristina, little Jeni, the ancient Cosian Jedi or Pix, who I was flattered to see looked particularly disappointed by my decision, could say a word I continued. "I've done what I could tonight, and I hope I've made a difference, but when all's said and done I'm a soldier of the Republic. I must serve her, no matter what".

"But" cried out Ahsoka "Palpatine controls..."

"I know, I know" I said hastily "but as I said, no matter what happens, my duty is still to the Grand Army and the Senate". With an expression of pious self sacrifice I gestured towards the tunnel entrance "and now you must go, I'll cover for you". Of course that was all complete and utter bantha manure; I had no intention of leaving the Temple with Rex and his collection of Jedi because I knew exactly what they had in store for them. I sure as Force wasn't about to become a hunted rebel; being chased across the galaxy by bounty hunters, the Grand Army and who knew who else, finely ending my days facing a firing squad on charges of high treason. Thanks but no thanks if it's all the same to you!

They all looked at each other and finally Rex nodded "alright Hawk, if you're sure about this".

"I am" I answered solemnly.

"Then good luck and take these" so saying my fellow clone passed me a satchel bulging with thermal detonators "I took these from a dead engineer; you can use them to collapse the chamber after we've left".

One by one the assembled Jedi began to make their way towards the trap door, each however somehow feeling obliged to say their farewells to me as they passed. The old Cosian, leaning heavily on his walking stick, peered up at me and said in a slow ponderous voice "take care of yourself my son; remember to always plan ahead, so that you may be certain of your road".

"That I will sir" I said with a smart salute. I hadn't a clue who the Jedi was at the time, but when checking the records later I came to the conclusion it was most likely Tera Sinube, the very same chap who'd told Ahsoka about the dratted tunnel in the first place. He was nice enough old sort in his way I seem to remember, but clearly as mad as a H'nemthe hoping to get lucky (but then again if you ask me most Jedi were).

Next came Pix, the scantily clad Padawan, who gave me the same slightly embarrassed smile. "Thanks for, you know, taking those guys out up there and um...you know, stuff". This time I was certain that I detected a blush.

Half bowing I said "think nothing of it miss, it was a pleasure". It hadn't been of course, but meeting Padawan Pix most certainly had!

Having said my goodbyes to the Padawan I was nearly knocked of my feet when what I at first took to be a small blue bolt of lightning connected hard with my stomach. My attacker however turned out to be the tiny Pantoran Youngling Jeni; who was now clinging to me like a limpet and grinning happily up at me. "Me kept me eyes closed whole way here" she said proudly.

For a moment I was at a loss until I remembered the 'game' I'd asked her to play, in an attempt to stop the poor kid seeing to many more of the mangled remains of her Order. I patted her on the head and said "well done my little Jedi, I can tell you're going to make a mighty Knight one day".

A moment later Jeni's older companions appeared and with their aid I managed to extricate myself from the child's tight embrace. The sober looking young man known as Marlow stuck out his hand formally, which I shook and he said "thank you captain; we owe you are lives".

"Yes" agreed Cristina, beaming up at me "we'll never forget you Hawk".

Having dispensed a few rather unimaginative phrases along the lines of 'think nothing of it' and 'I was just doing my duty' it at last came the turn of Rex and Ahsoka. As the last of my rescued Younglings vanished through the open trapdoor the captain and the Padawan stood before me to say farewell. "You're sure you won't come with us Hawk?" asked Rex.

"No my friend, my place is here" (_duty first_ was always the way to get under Rex's guard).

"Well goodbye then Hawk, good luck and don't forget the grenades" said Rex, giving me a final salute.

"The same to you Rex, and don't worry, I'll bring the roof down as soon as you've left".

Standing on her tiptoes Ahsoka kissed me on the cheek and gave me a warm smile. "Take care of yourself Hawk, look after the 501st for us won't you?"

"I will" I answered, slightly dazed by the kiss.

Rex and Ahsoka glanced at each other uneasily and eventually Ahsoka said nervously "a-and now Hawk, you mustn't be an angry with us OK?"

I frowned "about what?"

"Yeah I'm sorry Hawk, but it's for your own safety" added Rex apologetically.

"What are you two on about?" I asked completely mystified; winning the _Slowest Person on the Uptake in the Galaxy_ award hands down.

The blaster bolt that suddenly split the air was so unexpected and so close that it sounded as loud as a whole battery of AV-7s beginning a bombardment. An agonizing burning pain erupted in my left thigh and, screaming, I staggered and would certainly have fallen if my _'friends'_ hadn't caught me and gently lowered me to the floor. "I'm really sorry Hawk" said Rex, holstering his pistol, with an expression of concern on his honest face "but they might not have believed you if you'd said that everyone else had been killed and that'd you'd got Ahsoka and me".

"Yeah, they know you and Rex are friends and they might think that if Rex is capable of resisting Order 66, you might be too. Maybe if you're wounded they'll be more likely to believe you". Ahsoka looked at me fearfully "you're not angry with us are you?"

After a few seconds of incomprehensible hissing, moaning and gurgling I at last managed to snarl through gritted teeth "you son of a...oh Force I'm dying!"

"You'll be fine Hawk, it's only a flesh wound" said Rex, in an attempt to calm me which completely and utterly failed. Like most cowards I find few things as terrifying as the sight of my own blood, plenty of which was now streaming from the wound in my upper thigh. With a final pat on the back Rex said a final farewell and then retreated towards the trapdoor.

Ahsoka paused just before ducking out of sight to give me a last rueful smile and call "we're really _really_ sorry Hawk, but it was for your own good". So saying she pulled the door closed behind her and vanished as completely as the hidden entrance itself, leaving not so much as a hair wide crack behind to give away the tunnel's location.

* * *

><p>For a moment I could do nothing but sit where I was, starring in outraged silence (well that is to say I wasn't talking, I was of course whimpering and groaning in agony) at the place where the trapdoor had been. At last however, with a further grunt of pain, I crawled towards the doors to the Odeon and out into the corridor. I was sorely tempted to draw a dirty great sign over the entrance to the tunnel and direct the next clone force to come this way straight towards it. That would serve Rex and Ahsoka right, Force damn them! But if I didn't destroy the Odeon and the evidence of the battle that taken place in it people might have a poke around in it and start asking awkward questions. Who had been in command, who had ordered the attack and most importantly who had killed the five clones up in the back benches of the amphitheatre? No, it would be best to follow Rex's demolition plan, but for my own sake more than him and his girlfriends I can assure you! With considerable effort I managed to hurl the bag full of grenades back into the marble theatre and then primed a single thermal detonator and flung it in after the sack of its fellows. A few seconds after I had dived (or rather slid, as I was in no condition to do anything as energetic as leaping about the place) for cover a gratifyingly earth shattering explosion rent the air, followed by an equally ear-splitting sound of collapsing masonry. When things at last quietened down the high doorway to the room was completely obscured by an avalanche of fallen stone, twisted metal and rubble.<p>

However I didn't have to time to rest as a second or two later I became aware of the running boots of clone troopers, and a moment later a squad of soldiers burst around the corner, blaster rifles at the ready. Looking up I recognized the NCO leading them as Sergeant Voca, one of the clones who I had talked with back in the command centre of the 501st's barracks, what felt like a century ago. I managed a weak salute "good evening sergeant, I trust the Temple is now in our hands?"

Voca goggled at me in amazement "Captain Hawk? What are you doing here? What's happening? What was that explosion? Where are Sergeant Primer and his men? Are you injured?"

Now I think you'll agree that that's a hell of a lot of questions to have to answer when you feel as if your leg's been blown off, but I tried my best. "I pursued the traitorous Commander Tano through the city and into the Temple. I at last managed to track her down to this position, where I enlisted the help of Sergeant Primer and his squad to take her, and small group of other Jedis, down. Tragically Primer and his men were killed, and would have shared their fate if I hadn't managed to bring the roof of the theatre down on them". I jerked a thumb over my shoulder towards the wall of debris blocking the entrance to the Odeon. "As for my wound, it's nothing really, just a parting shot from a one of Temple's security guards" I said this with an expression of heroic suffering, trying to give the impression that, brave old warhorse that I was, I was in far more pain than I was letting on (which was entirely true).

Voca expression of amazement changed to one of admiration "you killed them all?"

I shook my head "not at all, all credit must go to the late Sergeant Primer and his heroic troopers. I merely did what I could to help". Of course there is nothing like denying and underplaying your supposed acts of bravery to set them in stone in the minds of your audience.

Voca suddenly seemed to remember my injured leg and called over the squad's medic, who proceeded to apply bacta gel and then a bandage to my wound in a very businesslike manner. I immediately felt the pain reseed slightly as the miracle substance got to work repairing the blaster hole in my thigh. I didn't have much time to lie back and enjoy the sensation however, as suddenly Voca glanced over his shoulder and sprang to attention. "Attention!" he bawled, getting the troopers under his command to follow his example. From my position on the floor, propped up as I was against the wall of the corridor, it took me a moment longer than everybody else to see who was approaching are little group. When I did however I could do nothing but gape in amazement.

Striding menacingly towards us down the corridor came none other than Anakin Skywalker...a Jedi? To say that I was completely at a loss would be an understatement. It didn't make any sense; after Order 66 every clone now considered the Jedi their mortal enemies and yet my companions were still treating Skywalker as if he was our general. However if the behaviour of the troopers around me was mystifying, it was nothing to Skywalker's own. The clones had just slaughtered his Order and practically demolished the Jedi Temple, and here he was marching around as if he owned the place and treating us as like his loyal soldiers. Standing ramrod straight Sergeant Voca gave Skywalker a parade ground quality salute and said "Lord Vader; the pocket of Jedi resistance has been neutralized, all thanks to the heroic efforts of Captain Hawk here".

Lord Vader? I looked up into the face of Skywalker from my position there on the floor, just as the Jedi I knew as Anakin Skywalker turned towards me, and got a horrible shock. The face was the same, no doubt about that, but the man looking through the eyes was not. The air of cheerily arrogant self confidence was gone and the eyes which had sparkled with adventurous insolence were now hard and filled with ice-cold hatred. Skywalker turned his baleful gaze upon me and asked in a dead emotionless voice "who was resisting?"

Masking my confusion and fear with no little difficultly I answered cautiously "your Padawan, t-that it is to say your former Padawan Ahsoka Tano and a small Jedi force...my lord" I added hastily. "Captain Rex, Sergeant Primer, a dozen troopers and I managed to trap them here. My comrades were all killed, but I managed to bring the roof down upon the Jedi".

Skyalker (or should I say Lord Vader) continued to stare at me, giving nothing away. "They are all dead...Tano is dead?" he asked at last.

"Yes my lord"

Suddenly and almost imperceptibly something flickered behind the Jedi's (Sith now of course, but I didn't know that at the time) eyes. "Did she...suffer?"

Not knowing what was the correct answer to this I at last decide to make a stab and hope for the best. "No my Lord, the entire chamber collapsed in seconds, it would have been nearly instantaneous".

The...whatever it was...vanished from Vader's eyes as quickly as it come, to be replaced once more by the heartless, malevolent stare. "You have done well captain" and without another word, with a swish of his black hooded cloak, he turned and strode away. In my mind I think of Anakin Skywalker and Dark Vader as two very different people, completely separate from one another. That is not overly difficult when one of them was a cheerful young Jedi and the other a terrifying dark lord. However that night he had not yet fallen into the fiery lava of Mustafar and had not yet been rebuilt, and so when I encountered Darth Vader for the first time he and Skywalker were truly one and the same. Horribly surreal I can tell you!

* * *

><p>Soon after that I was evacuated from the Temple to the field hospital for the wounded of the battle that had been established in the plaza facing the home of the Jedi Order. I found myself lying on one of the irritatingly uncomfortable camp beds generally found in clone hospitals everywhere and realized that, despite feeling as if I'd been beaten to a pulp by a gang of incensed gamorreans, I had survived. And, not to put too fine a point on it, that was Order 66 as I saw it. The destruction of the Temple was of course only the tip of the iceberg; clones turned on their Jedi commanders across the galaxy. During the bloodbath that followed and continued for months, even years, after Order 66 was initiated the Jedi Order was all but wiped out. The Empire was born that night, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. Oh yes it wouldn't been official for a good long time, but as dawn broke over Coruscant the sun illuminated a new order; an order that would rule the galaxy for the next twenty three years. Most of this of course I say with the benefit of hindsight.<p>

To tell you the truth though, as I lay sprawled on my hospital bunk, high and mighty thoughts about the death of the Republic and the fall of the Jedi wasn't exactly what was occupying my mind. My leg was still stinging abominably from Rex's parting shot (pun most certainly intended) and I could think about little else. It healed of course, after a few days in bed I was hobbling about and the medical droid assured me that I would be right as rain in a week. Well I suppose the bloody pile of scrap must've had a faulty databank or something, because it's been close on twenty five years and I still feel it twinge every now and again! Understandably my thoughts turned to Rex and Ahsoka; they hadn't been caught yet but I felt certain that it was only a matter of time and equal certain that I'd never set eyes on either of them again. As it turned out I was wrong; are paths would cross again, years later. And by the holy Force, was I glad to see them! But as I've said before, that's another story.

The End

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><p>[<strong>Author's Note: <strong>I hope you enjoyed this fic, I'm sorry it took me so long to getting round to writing it. As I said in the introduction; there weren't as many laughs as I would have liked and a bit too much angst for my taste, but for that I lay the blame squarely on the subject matter.

Padawan Ahsoka Tano, Master Tera Sinube and Padawan Pix are among the many Jedi left unaccounted for after Order 66. It would seem that their fate at last has been revealed.]

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